1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for the automatic cutting up or dividing of fish fillets, from which preferably the pinbones and/or belly flaps have been removed, for the purpose of gaining (commercially) useable pieces defined by essentially parallel cut edges, such as, for example, the tail part or a portion thereof, constituting so-called tails, as well as so-called loins extending from the front end to the tail part and including the dorsal muscle, the apparatus essentially comprising a conveying device driven in a revolving manner which conveys the fillets in a position lying flat and substantially perpendicular to their longitudinal axis; a cutting mechanism positioned above its conveying surface; and an electronic camera system for detecting an image of the fish and for the imagedependent control of the cutting mechanism.
2. Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,557,019 discloses an apparatus for automatically dividing up fish fillets into portions, in which the fish fillets are applied to a conveyor belt with the longitudinal axis thereof aligned in the conveying direction and the dividing cuts are made at right angles to said conveying direction. The cutting mechanism is controlled by an electronic image scanning system, which detects and scans the shape of the fillet to be divided, effects a weight determination by computing and, on the basis thereof, activates the cutting mechanism, whilst taking account of the advance speed of the fillets and the desired portions.
It is a disadvantage of this known apparatus that it is not possible to integrate it into an automatic filleting line with a presently common throughput capacity due to the system-based, comparatively low working speed. In addition, the known apparatus does not ensure a complete division or separation of the fillet portions reliably, because it is unavoidable, for this purpose, that the dividing or cutting knife is inserted in the bearing surface, whilst using the same as a cutting abutment or support.
Norwegian patent No. 78 432 discloses a cutting mechanism for producing "fork morsels" from fish fillets. This apparatus utilizes thin, juxtaposed knife blades, which are constructed so as to be lowerable onto the fillets placed transversally on the conveyor and supplied by the latter with the same rhythm as said operation and effects a division by drawing cuts. The actual division takes place at a fixed spacing, i.e. by producing portions of uniform length and with all the knife blades operating in a manner which cannot be influenced or controlled.
3. Objects of the Invention
It is the major object of the present invention to suggest an apparatus which can be integrated into a modern filleting line. It is a further essential object of the invention to suggest an apparatus with the aid of which it is possible to divide or cut up fish fillets supplied in close succession and which are unsorted as regards their sizes in accordance with predeterminable, e.g. configuration-dependent criteria.